The gnarled trees of the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest really are ancient: many are more than 4,000 years old and, until recently, were thought to be the world’s oldest living things. Able to survive in arid conditions and in poor soil, the bristlecone pines’ growing season seldom lasts more than four weeks, while a spread – out root system causes the trees to be widely spaced and therefore relatively invulnerable to forest fires.

At the end of the paved road off Hwy-168 from Big Pine, the Visitor Centre at Schulman Grove provides an explanation of the trees’ longevity and two walking trails lead into bristlecone pine groves. The most picturesque section of the forest, however, is found at the end of a bumpy, hour-long uphill drive to Patriarch Grove, where a scattering of bristlecone contributes to the desolate beauty of the White Mountains.

When dwelling on the haunting qualities of this 11,000-ft-high landscape, you might also ponder the fact that just 1,000 feet further up, the University of California operates a high-altitude research laboratory at what is thought to be the country’s highest inhabited place.